Stay on target

Last fall, after over a year of teasing, Microsoft finally released the Xbox One X, its “Most Powerful Console Ever.” As to be expected, the upgraded console also launched alongside a revamped version of the Xbox Live software and interface. But one part of the Xbox experience got left behind in this great leap forward… until now. Microsoft is preparing to overhaul its Avatars, and a leaked video provided more details.

ResetEra forum users first found the YouTube video, uploaded by a former Microsoft designer, showing the new Xbox Avatar Editor in action. The original video has been removed but there’s still a lot we can glean off of screengrabs and snippets uploaded to Twitter.

The video shows off the expanded range of body customization options as well as new clothes and objects you can equip on your Avatar. The original Avatars, created in response to the more abstract Mii characters of Nintendo Wii, have always looked like slightly more realistic cartoons. But these new editing tools for coloring your fingernails or getting just the perfect 1950s greaser hair are practically The Sims. They’re so different that objects purchased for old Avatars actually aren’t compatible with these new ones, powered by the Unity Engine.

We’ve known new Xbox Avatars have been coming for a while. As far back as 2016 Microsoft was showcasing new diverse Avatar options like wheelchairs and artificial limbs. We got a new trailer for them during this past E3, and apparently they were originally slated to launch alongside the Xbox One X last fall. But we shouldn’t be waiting too much longer now since testers should be getting these tools sometime this month. And like so many of Microsoft’s modern gaming initiatives now, the new Avatars works across Xbox One and Windows 10.

People are diverse, that’s great, and our virtual avatars should reflect and express that. So the more Xbox Live Avatar options the better. Gotta use that 4K power for something.